Implications of climate change on biodiversity in Nepal: Some observations and opportunities

Now there is no doubt among scientific communities that earth is getting warmer due to greenhouse effects leading to unintended changes in climatic patterns. This paper attempts to address some of the pertinent questions of climate change impacts in Nepal and then emphasizes on efforts required to make community forestry an eligible sector for international climate funds. Importance of the initiative lies on the fact that rural communities of developing nations have a crucial role to restore and manage local forests. Like any other forests, these are the source of numerous environmental services including carbon sequestration, reduced or avoided deforestation/degradation, watershed protection and biodiversity conservation. To support the arguments, contemporary literatures and some empirical evidences of climate change impacts in parts of Nepal Himalaya are discussed. Highlighting the preliminary findings of an action research called 'Kyoto: Think global, act local', that shows community forests as a source for carbon sequestration, the paper concludes with an emphasis on promoting international advocacy in favour of making the community forestry activities of Nepal and other developing countries eligible for global climate funds.